Underwater eye protector



July 9, 1935. w. G. FARRELL UNDERWATER EYE PROTECTOR Filed May 15, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l WALTE/i 6. FARRELL INVENTOR ATTORNEY July 9, 1935. w. G. FARRELL UNDERWATER EYE PROTECTOR Filed M y 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WALTER FARRELL IN 'TOR ATTORNEY 1.14. r num UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 9 Claims.

(Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as

amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) This invention relates to an underwater goggle or eye protector for use when normally swimming or when diving to collect specimens such as corals, shells, etc., for sport as in spearing fish, or for working under water for short periods.

It is the object of this invention to provide a device of the type specified that will effectively exclude water from contact with the eyes and prevent irritation, to increase the ability of a wearer to see under water and further to make possible the rapid an accurate shaping of the part thereof that contacts---lf' faEso it will-fit perfectly the facial configurationof the wearer.

In wings:

Fig. 1 is a front view of one form of my invention and shows an embodiment of my invention adapted to the eyes only;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of one member thereof;

Fig. 3 is an end view of said member;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view on line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a front View of a form of my inven tion adapted to cover both eyes and the nose of the wearer;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section on line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Figs. 7 and 9 are enlarged details of the rim that fits against the face;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail of a method of securing the transparent member in position in the device shown in Fig. 5.

In articles of this kind it has heretofore been the practice to 'make-thefaeenontagti rgportions of rigidend hard materials andtpjtther'n to the wearerby carefully'scrapirigthem so that they will follow exactly the contour oft hose parts of thefaceyagainst whichtheylie. This is a long, painstaking operation requiring a high degree of skill. A small portion of the material is removed, the goggle is tried on the person who is to wear it to ascertain now nearly a fit has been attained, and the operation repeated many times until the goggle rim has been properly shaped.

With my invention the goggle can be fitted in a very short time by even an unskilled person since it is necessary merelyiwessflthaartjclfifl a pst the face of the person who is .tdwear it, in,the norfifalfitisifion offisefwhlle the material of the rearrlm'isplasticf andthenspfirmit the plastic'to lfijrden.

mber of the protector shown in Fig. 1

comprises a body portion ill formed of any suitable material which may be originally plastic and which hardens under normal atmospheric conditions or by baking or vulcanization. The transparent portion H may be of the same material as body Ill if that material is sufficiently transparent or it may be of glass, etc. The perforated 5 ears 12 of the two members are connected in any suitable way, as by a piece of wire or string that will lie across the nose of the wearer. Perforated ears l3 have attached to them a band that passes around the back of the wearers head to 10 hold the device in operative position. The rear edge of body I!) is of substantially increased thickness as compared with the rest of the body and either channeled as indicated at M in Figs. 2 and 7 or it may be transversely continuous and somewhat thickened as shown at 15 in Fig. 9 to anchor securely the plastic material 16 of the rim ll.

When new goggles are made up, the material 16 contains a sufficient quantity of solvent or plasticizing agent to keep material l6 soft and. evaporation of this agent is prevented either by covering it with an air-tight coating, as is well known in the practice in preventing hardening of certain automobile patches, or the go gle may be sealed up in a container charged with the vapor of the solvent or plasticizing agent which will prevent evaporation of the agent from material l6. When the goggle is to be used it is taken from the container and presseekfirmlyagainst the ia cesoithgpersonwtho is to wil it, thus causing 30 e soft materialjfi pjasswuxmfigse M E1 of the face of e wearer contacted thereby and so a perfect fit is obtained with a minimum of manipulation, the article being then left in the air or placed in a suitable heating device to evaporate the plasticizing agent and cause material IE to become hard. One substance that has been found satisfactory for making the rim lHs-the...so= materialthavingt plastici tial The form of my invention shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 8 is made of suflicient size to cover the eyes and nose of the wearer, and contact the forehead 45 above the eyes and the upper lip below the nose, or it may contact the chin and so cover the mouth as well. This form comprises a body portion 18 having a transparent sheet 19 set in its forward side and a rear edge 20 adapted to anchor a rim 50 of plastic material as above set forth. As shown in Fig. 8, the transparent sheet l9 may be set in a suitable recess in body It! and secured therein by hardened plastic material 2| that also forms a water-tight seal. This form eliminates any 55 parallax that might exist between the two lenses in the form shown in Figs. 1 to 4 and also permits more light to be received by the eye, thus increasing the wearer's range of visibility. It is apparent that this form of my invention will contain a limited amount of air and. permit the wearer to draw a small number of breaths therefrom while underwater and so will make it possible for the wearer to remain submerged for a longer time. The rim of plastic material carried by the rear edge 20 is fitted to the contour of the wearer's face in the manner above described in connection with the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 4.

Instead of covering the entire nose of the wearer, the eye protector shown may be shaped to pass over the nose to leave a portion thereof exposed to permit the use of a nose clip and a diving lung such as are well known in the art of submarine rescue work. Or it may be as illustrated and be provided with an air valve for connection, by means of a flexible hose, to an oxygen flask carried by the wearer of the protector to make it possible to remain submerged for considerable periods.

It is to be understood that the above description and accompanying drawings comprehend only the general and preferred embodiment of my invention, and that various changes may be made within the scope of the appended claims without sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

The invention herein described may be manufactured and used by or for the United States Government for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalty thereon.

I claim:

1. An eye protector, comprising a member adapted to cover each eye of a wearer and means connecting said members, each of said members having a transparent portion, a channeled rear edge and a rim anchored to said rim, said edge being of plastic material containing afimia file plasticizing agent adapted to evaporate uponexposure of said material to air thereby permitting said material to harden,

2. An eye protector, comprising a member adapted to cover each eye of a wearer and means connecting said members, each of said members having a transparent portion and a rim on the rear edge of said member, said rim being of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent adapted to ready evaporation upon exposure of the material to air thereby permitting said material to harden.

3. An eye protector adapted to cover both eyes and the nose of a wearer, comprising a transparent portion, a body in which said transparent portion is mounted, and a rim on the rear edge of said body, said rim being of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent adapted to evaporate upon exposure of the material to air thereby permitting said material to harden.

4. A method of making an eye protector, comprising the steps of integrally forming a rim portion and a body portion of plastic material that will be transparent when hard, hardening the material in said portions, forming on the rear edge of said body portion an enlarged rim of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent, preventing the evaporation of said agent until the article is to be used, pressing said rim in the position of normal use against the face of the person who will wear the article, thereby imprinting on said rim the facial contour of the wearer and then permitting said agent to evaporate.

5. In a method of making an eye protector, the steps of shaping the rear edge of the protector body substantially to conform to the facial contour of a wearer, applying to said rear edge a bulbous rim of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent, preventing the evaporation of said agent until the article is to be used, then imprinting upon said rim the facial contour of a particular wearer and permitting said agent to evaporate.

6. In a method of making an eye protector, the steps of shaping the rear edge of the protector body substantially to conform to the facial contour of a wearer, applying to said rear edge a thickened rim of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent, preventing the evaporation of said agent until the article is to be used, then imprinting upon said rim the facial contour of a particular wearer and permitting said agent to evaporate.

'7. In a method of making an eye protector, the steps of shaping the rear edge of the protector body substantially to conform to the facial contour of a wearer, applying to said rear edge a rim of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent, preventing the evaporation of said agent until the article is to be used, then imprinting upon said rim the facial contour of a particular wearer and permitting said agent to evaporate.

8. In a method of making an eye protector, the steps of shaping the rear edge of the protector body substantially to conform to the facial contour of the wearer, applying to said rear edge a rim of plastic material containing a volatile plasticizing agent and preventing the evaporation of said agent until the article is to be used.

9. In a method of making an eye protector, the step of shaping therea r edgebf. theptQtectm body substantially to conform to the facial contour of the wearer, applying to said rear edge-a rim of plastic material aiidiereventihg the hardening of said plastic material until the article is to be used.

WALTER G. FARRELL. 

